It seldom turns out the way it does in the song.
The x factor here is Ned Lagin,
I here him in the mix starting with Scarlet
some reviewers seem unaware of SEASTONES
So all things considered this is Ned meeting the band halfway.
Check this out: http://nedbase.blogspot.com/
(If you think about NED was MIDI before there was MIDI.)

As far as this show besides the technical difficulties
the band seems in pretty good form.
The setlist is varied and pretty unique.
I get off on the music
so what would be the problem here?
Sugaree has a skip blah, blah blah
Did the band not give 3 sets here?
AND DON'T GET ME STARTED
IT IS THE WALL OF SOUND..
That Nobody's Fault jam is so very sweet!
perhaps just the slightest hint of
Blues For Allah Under Eternity riff
before Wharf Rat

KOCHMAN's review is very useful and we need more like that. It's fine to tell interesting things that may have happened on the day of the show but I want to know about the tracks IN the show. My recordings are reviewer based and reviews like that are exactly what I need. I never listen to a single note until I fire up the bose so keep up the good work. no rating of the show till I actually listen to it tonite.

Christ, you know they did a sound check to set the levels on that giant ass PA. What happens though between sound check and actual show time I will never figure out. Many a Bertha and Promised Land get crapped on by the mix. It's okay though and kind of funny.
Still a 5 star '74 freak fest. Killer jams are here where they should be.
Ned's synth sounds pretty harsh on the soundboard recording but I bet it was pretty mind blowing if you were there.

it is Ned

One of my favorite shows period. Has anyone noticed the strange sounds coming out of the keyboards on Playing? Not a conventional keyboard sound at all...particularly if you are talking about Keith playing on this song. You can hear him on the organ but in playing you start to hear some beeps and squeals and otherworldly sounds coming from the keyboard. If it was not Ned then it sounds like Keith sat down at Ned's keyboard and made some strange sounds. Listen and let me know what you think. Either Ned without credit or Keith or "somebody" making Ned like sounds. Anybody have any color on this? Feedback?

Bertha suffers from poor balance in the SBD, and poor playing. There are also cuts.
Mexicali, SQ is better here, and the energy is awesome. Jerry does some interesting trills with his guitar. He's basically rapidly throwing down double notes. The SQ then shits the bed again, and the drums and vox are all we get up front. Was this a Wall of Sound issue perhaps? Too many moving pieces theory?
Row Jimmy has Keith on the organ. Can't hear Phil & Bob well, by the end of the song we seem to have gained full SQ.
BIODTL
Scarlet Begonias has a nice mellow tempo. Donna flow moans during the jam. The outro jam that will one day go into FOTM is nice.
BTW... ugh, Bob's voice is low in the mix. They just can't get it right! They do fix that before the song ends, and it ends off nicely.
Sugaree... ARGH! The sound drops out again. Then a cut.
El Paso, the piano needs tuning and Phil has a fit because the crowd won't be quiet so they can tune it. Ummmm. Anyhow, the song is fine, though Jerry misses a few points of noodle. I like Bob's distressed sounding singing.
Must Have Been the Roses hits the spot, finally the SQ is good.
Jack Straw gets to some Jerry fanning. Keith is on the organ.
China>Rider, ah, finally to some official release SQ. First jam builds up energy nicely. By the 8 minute mark we get into X-Factor as it switches gears into Rider with force. The Rider is a bit less than I would like.
Around x2 closes us out with force.

US Blues opens the 2nd with force.
Race is On, one of the best renditions of this song out there.
Eyes>Big River
Eyes is super groovy, nice and long. The final jam before heading into the Mississippi is jazzy as it gets. In Big River Keith assumes the organ where he'd normally be on piano... not the best choice. Jerry and the rest of the gang make up the difference decently.
PITB starts strong, with Keith taking some really strange tone... not even classical artists would have touched the harpsichord tone he takes. By the 4 minute mark we're already in a gorgeous jam. Melodic and exploratory right out of the gate. Phil putting down some strong bass helps. That strange harpsichord is now awesomely creepy. The song turns toward space for several minutes, but gains more energy around the 15 minute mark, with the Tiger tone being assumed. At 16 the Tiger does leap out of the bushes and tear your face off. Just after the 22 minute mark we hit a short lived but awesome jam, this gets recalibrated back to the PITB them and this will lengthily return us to the reprise. Pretty good PITB, though pre-Tiger it did start getting a little snoozy for me. The crazed Tiger made it worth it!

TN Jed is back to the SBD source, sound issues are gone now. Keith should not use the organ on this one. Makes it sound like circus music. It does work well in the fantastic final jam!
MAMU
Deal is great, sans the circus tone keys. Jerry is on fire. Strong finish.
GSET is raucus.
Ship of Fools features the Keith signature funeral home tone, perfect. Great stuff here.
Truckin>Nobody's Jam>Wharf Rat>GDTRFB
The meat sequence starts with a juicy Truckin, the explosion is great. Keith's tone is somewhat psychedelic, still, but he kind of misplays it a bit during the explosion, as though he were still playing piano. After the explosion this heads right into Nobody's Fault But Mine Jam. Around the 9 minute mark we get an interesting jam, with the MLB theme clearly in there. Wharf Rat finds its roots coming out of that jam in a great way. A powerful Wharf Rat with an extremely climactic ending washes up on the sodden shores of Goin' Down the Road. I mean, the song actually sounds drunk during the intro. This is in large part due to Bob's rhythm playing. It builds up energy nicely as well, very bluesy Jerry throughout. This meat sequence will entertain you, unless you are deaf.

Encore: Casey Jones = Fun times!

______________________________________

Performance Summary
The first set... I can't get past the terrible sound issues that plague 1/2 the set. It was very frustrating, and not the band's fault. Once the SQ gets fixed, it's a pretty good set.


Sound Quality
Official release = A+
SBD starts off really rough. It doesn't get better until El Paso really, so maybe start the show there... definitely tune in to Phil freaking out before El Paso.

wharf rat.... the reason I'm digging in the dead whether rain or shine. Wharf Rat is the sole reason I digg the dead as much as I do from this year beyond. This show is as historical as any 1974 show, but if you're a newcoming Dead fan, find a way to get this copy, it'll change your life and the way you see the Grateful Dead, it's amazing

What they achieve can only be stated as beautiful. They reach not for fame, for any achievement. Its a transcendental grasp. Hard to hold. What this sound places upon you will forever cement the grace and beauty of such music. This concert is very well played *duh!*. There is so much more... but not much to say. I am faltering on words because I so very recently began to awake to a sense of understanding the transcendental... thus these concerts leave fleeting imprints upon me that arrive with truth alongside each song. True beauty is played in each song. We are the song the mornign brings. We are one. We are beauty, and truth, and the sound harmonious with that. Let it ring in all ears! Let the Dead ring in all ears! Let them ring as we are- and ring as one with the most beautiful and passionate sound ever conceived by mortals! Divine beauty in the sound, poetic truth within the lyrics... something amazing here that moves fully in completely-achieved unison throughout 74. Keith plays a tremendous part. They all do. They all do as one. We all do as one. All beauty all life all synonymous all as one. All songs all grace. All of this! THe music... that's what its about on this website. That's the extent of my rambling... this is quite an amazing concert though, and alongside just about every concert, should be heard in chornological order with the rest of this month becuase they had arrived at such a wonderful place with the sound and setlists here

Now this show has a great lineup the only thing that would make u need to download this show is by far the best Chinacat>Rider ever that iv heard so if your a fan of 74 shows download for sure

Heads, I've got a full soundboard of this show. email me at gerryjarcia42@gmail.com for trading possibilities (i'm specifically looking for a full SBD of the Roosevelt Stadium show on 1974-08-06).

peace, Gerry

Bill K was all over his kit with great jazz work and he's very clear in the mix. Eyes>River is worthy of all the praise here, really upbeat and well played except when Jerry kinda gets lost on the Eyes ending jam. Segue is sweet tho. The spacey Playin' is one of my favs, especially the jam leading you down the rabbit hole, Phil takes you to DARK places. Also check out the nobody's fault jam. Classic '74, strange tangents and interesting segues. They were so nimble this era, i think the single-drummer was freeing in this respect.

i can honestly say that dead shows like this are better than sex some times!!!! especially the eyes > big river

Lots of nice stuff but uneven, and not great audio. Maybe I should listen to Eyes again.

I can see now a bit of Blues for Allah in Nobody's Jam, and all this time I thought they had just picked up on Freddie Hubbard's 'Breaking Point' for that.

Nice funkadelic journey through the history of their repetoire. Phil is way up in front and the lyrics are a little buried. There is a significant amount of hiss, but definitely listenable.

Everything they're saying about the Eyes is true, listen and get big grins like me. The jam at the end (into Big River) has two things I love that haven't been touched on, a beautiful Phil solo (sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't) & awesome, stunning drumming from Bill K. I had to actually check the date to make sure it was from the 'one-drummer' era, because he sounds like several people at some points. The fact that the drums are loud in the mix helped me notice that he is almost leading the band during this jam,dictating changes, even without a 'melody' instrument. Amazing rolls, over-the-bar fills, Billy is a JAZZ drummer folks (as well as a rock and country drummer), and he proves it here in spades.

I'm pretty much a 60's guy, but this is amazing, better than most anything from the 70's. Quick, clean, good jams and quality. Listened to it for years and still think it's one of the best

We drove in from Omaha. I believe the actual name of the venue was The Iowa State Fairgrounds. It was a beautiful afternoon, sunny, not too hot. The stage was set up in the center of the track with the "wall" pointed at the grandstands. Bill Graham was there. I got a great pic of him kneeling at the front of the stage. Phil had a beard, Jerry didn't. The crowd was very relaxed and friendly. Absolutely the best show I ever saw. What you can't hear on any tape is Phil moving the sound of his bass from side to side, up, down and around in the wall of sound during the long jams. It was piss-your-pants exciting.

trust me i love keith's playin in general, but the only thing that holds this show back for me is keith in a few jams, i love whatever hes using but for example, in IKYR he plays a total blues scale, doesnt sound good at all, he does that a few times in other jams as well(big river) anyway gotta love the eyes>river segue TOTAL SWAMP MUSIC!china>rider segue is great too. good show even though keith kinda pisses me off

This is all around great show especially nobodys fault but mine jam,phil is right on with everything, no sleep walkin

Hard not to give this one a 5...

This show is middle of the road by 1974 standards, but don't leave this page without at least downloading the Eyes > Big River. The Eyes is underrated and is one of the best I have ever heard. Jazzy, upbeat, and clean. The transition into Big River is as good as it gets, it has to be heard to be believed. For that reason I prefer it over the Eyes > China Doll from 6-18-74, which I think is a better show overall, but not in every sense.

Here is where people lose their credibility. This show is NOT a 5 star show. The playing, while not sloppy, is still lax. The boys sounded a bit tired and sleepwalk their way through many songs. The jam to end Scarlet Begonias in nice, but everything else seems like goin thru the motions. Not to mention the board and sound problems. The dead where Magical on many nights, but this night will not see heavy rotation in my player.

Yep, Dead72 nails it, for the era that is, the february Winterland run sits as an island of 73-74 bliss, but This show is one of 4 june champions. The band demonstrates a capability to compose on stage, and works through now well tested body of material, yet spins it out uniquely 74. The fact that one can hear the eyes spreading its wings, and know it's 74, and not 73 has to say something.

email me at fieldhouse11277@hotmail.com happy to share with good listeners.

I would love to know what smgarcia considers a 5.

This show is amazing, despite a few board glitches early on.

Epic Playin, Eyes, China Cat, Greatest story. The list goes on.

Maybe top 3 of all time for me.

Too each his own.

sound wise. I'm in the middle of it right now as I listen to it and it is of questionable quality. I'm going to give this show 3 stars/5 because of that.

Plus, the song cutting is screwed up...all of the tuning between songs must be attached to the end of the previous song, not the beginning of the following song.

Quality is B+

I drove down from Minneapolis with a friend for this show, another guy in my house had also gone the day before. The band had these amazing tents set up behind the stage and any of the campers could go in there to partake of apparently amazing delicacies. I remember how much of the equipment in front of the Wall of Sound were illuminated with these little green lights on the meters and such that seemed to be producing energy in something other than the normal visual spectrum, much like the speakers transcended the customary aural range.

The banter right after Bertha is great: time is only a subjective experience. Scarlet Begonias is utterly amazing, Jack Straw is hot, China Cat/Rider is to die for, and this is only the first set! (Wait until you hear U.S. Blues.)

And as others have commented Eyes is perfect and Band is great and so is everything else. The gleam is absolutely amazing; and so is it's pain. It's 100% pure Grateful Dead with very few taping errors.

I know the Bertha's mixing job is questionable, but it's one of my favorite versions.

Gets a 4 only because of first set sound issues. The China/Rider makes my spirit simply jump outta me and take flight...every time. Such a great show. All the highlights have been pretty much touched on already.

This show, along with Louisville 6/18, Providence 6/26, and Boston 6/28, are representative of the band in their post-Pigpen peak. This Des Moines show is sometimes overlooked perhaps due to the greatness of what would follow in this month, but a case could be made for these 4 shows to all be in the top 50 of all time. Shows can sometimes be divided into "jam" shows and "song" shows.
This is a "song" show. This is one of those months-a special feel, like May of '77, May of '72, or April of '71.

Wow! I don't even know where to start with this show; it is simply HOT! HOT! HOT! Yes, there are a few mixing problems in the first set, but luckily, it works itself out for Scarlet and Row Jimmy. The Scarlet is one of the best I've ever heard, and I've heard many! It is groovin and jammin all the way! The China>Rider is killer!! IMO, Better than the one from Providence a few days later. I mean it is just as tight as can be, I love the jam and Phil on the first line of Rider..."I knoooow you rider gunna miss me when I'm goooone! Whoooooh! I think this show has really been overlooked based on the other shows from '74 that get all the attention. From top to bottom, it is definately in the top 3 for me. We all know that Jerry was at his best this year, but Bobby, Phil and Keith really do some amazing stuff in this show, at least I notice it more in this recording that any other. Download this show it is a TRUE JEM!! Highlights: A groovy Scarlet, soulful Row Jimmy, one spacy Playing; One of the best China>Riders ever!, some seriously erie jams during Eyes and hte way it flawlessly bleeds into Big River - Lights out!!!
To the dude who got this one for their forst show, you are truley lucky! I'd love to see pictures from that scene if you have any to share.

Everyone has a favorite show - this one's mine. Also my first. The impact at the time was so intense (for multiple reasons), I have actually been afraid to listen to this, as it might ruin the memory. BUT - no problem: a truly transendental show. And other than some minor sound glitches, a pristine recording.

I most remember the moment that Round N Round modulates up in mid-solo - sent an electric surge through the crowd. Also remember the moment Eyes began to transition to River, Playin', Scarlet and Phil coming out to say, 'We're not going to play all night, but we are going to play all day ...' (or something like that) And they did, 12:30 to about 5:30.

Sitting up in the grandstand bar the night before, watching the crew assemble the wall of sound -I had no idea what was in store -

Download this - it's a three set gem.

Unbelieveable to hear this 31 years later.

Wow, I love this show more every time I listen! Somehow this show has a completely unique sound to my ears that I haven't even been able to come close to describing. I sense that there's a musical term I'm fumbling for here, but beats me what it might be. It just really sounds cool and different, to get technical about it. The transition from Eyes into Big River is so perfect, so quintessentially "Dead at their best" that it gives me chills. And don't get me started about the Playin'. A precious little jewel of a performance.

if you can get past the horrible sounding first nine songs...the rest is absolutely fantastic. Around and around is smokin' and the eyes into big river is astounding.

After '77 I think '74 has become my second favorite year...thanks to shows like this.

Anyway, killer show...crazy-good China>Rider. There are some mixing problems at times on the first CD, but overall a SOLID performance. Download it!

a pearl of a show.. I agree with most other comments made about this show: EPIC China>Rider (nice UJB tease) and Jack Straw, a truly legendary Eyes, a soulful Ship of Fools, the thunderous Playin' all done in classic 74' style, great energy and a fun ride. Highly recommended, it's Iowa- ever been to Iowa, it's gotta be somethin in those cornfields man...

May-June 1974 was definitely one of the peak period in Dead lore. I'd say they didn't reach another plateau like this until May '77. This has been a favorite of mine since I got it off nugs.net. Love this Scarlet Begonias. This one really demonstrates the exploration they did into this song before pairing it with Fire on the Mountain in '77. Highlight of the show is the Eyes>Big River and the Playin'. They're all over the place on this one.
And whats that? One more set? If you insist. They bring the whole show to a thundering conclusion with the Truckin'>Nobody's>Wharf Rat>GDTRFB.

For me, this show is legendary. It was one of my first tapes, acquired in 1977.

Begonias, Race Is On, etc. The Playin is incredible, one of the few I listen to all the way through.

This show is a classic for many reasons most notably Eyes and Playin', but the overall groove of this '74 gem is felt everywhere.
Scarlet has a good Jerry jam, the Black-Throated really soars and Straw>China>Rider>Around closes out a really good 1st set.
A few songs into Set 2 it's Eyes of the World! This particular version of Eyes is absolutely incredible. If you are an Eyes of the World fan, you must download this version. Jerry's interplay with Bobby and Phil is ridiculous and Keith busts out some nice chops himself. This segues invisibly into a rippin' Big River. Then they finsish Set 2 with a mind blowing Playing in the Band . This is one of Keith's finest performances ever. Notice him feeding off Jerry throughout on this epic version. .....but there's still Set 3!
The 3rd set highlights include a wonderful Greatest, a power jam out of Truckin and a show stopping GDTRFB closer. The Casey Jones encore must only be described as an afterthought.

I am so thankful that I can access these shows. I mean, the sound got bad from time to time throughout this show; realistically its better than no sound. I was born nine years after this show and am so glad I can jam to this truly nasty performance of Eyes seen in this setlist.

Listening to this show for the first time was a pleasant surprise because in my humble experience of 74 shows (esp late 74), energy can sometimes be lacking.

To be sure, sound quality could have been better. It always seemed as if whoever was fooling around with the EQ took a while to get it right. But don't let it eclipse the enjoyment.

As others have said, the Eyes > Big River is nice. For me, the Nobody's Jam was probably the highlight. Peace out.

Uh, the first two minutes or so of Bertha, most of what I hear is the drums! like some kind of garage band practice. Also noticed a glitch/drop-out later in Bertha. Of course, nice to have this recording, regardless. If anyone notices any other glitches, please post...

This show has some fine moments, but I was disappointed, based on the rave reviews. The sound quality is spotty, and in my opinion, Ned Lagin ruins a few songs with his annoying electronic noise. That said, still a fine show.

Spectacular show from start. The 'Eyes of the World' from this show is one of the very best.

This is an amazing show, that is only eclipsed by the following show in Louisville,KY. 3 whole sets of strong playing, where the 2nd set possibly outshines the last. The Eyes and Big River sequence just blazes!
And the Playin - here occupying a rare mid-set position, is one of the best for 1974. Worth getting this show for the Playin alone, seriously!
Who'da thunk the boys could jam like this in IOWA?
Great show companion to 6/18, with a great Wall of Sound quality.
Dr. Flashback :-)

Awesome three setter. Sweet stand alone Scarlet, raunchy China > Rider, monster Fender Rhodes filled Playin'. Then the Eyes > Big River, a blazing GSET and a monster jam at the end. Get this one now and listen to the entire thing. You won't be disappointed.

Do not miss the Truckin > Nobody's Jam > Mind Left Body Jam > slow Mind Left Body Jam > Wharf Rat!!! And Ned Lagin helps make the Playin' one of the spaciest and most interesting of 1974. Download this monster show now.

I've had the second set for a while now and the Eyes into Big River still blows me away. Very hot!